Seesaw Central!

Using Seesaw is one way to create a steady stream of information for parents. A by-product of using Seesaw as a parent communication tool is that students start to realize how important Seesaw is to their parents. This gives them reason to take it more seriously! Also, Seesaw becomes a family's one stop shop rather than keeping parent guessing on how you will be communicating with them. If you provide a handwritten class calendar, don't be afraid to take a picture of it and post it. Use the Inbox/Outbox to direct communications to parents. Notice that when parent's open an announcement it automatically pulls to the most recent communication from the teacher, even though it is at the bottom of the list of announcements.

Additional Suggestion: At some point it would be a good idea to let parents know that Seesaw submissions are their child's daily unedited work. It isn't going to be polished by the teacher before they see it, and will provide the parents with a great insight into their child's daily work. Also, some students don't finish their work in one sitting and will submit "in progress" work. Parents get a notification for each submission, even this "in progress" work. If a project seems like it will require more days for students to work, have them login through Clever and choose the new "DRAFT" option. (See this discussion below)

Check out a few examples of teacher communications below!

Over the last few years, many of you have developed a rich array of Google projects that you want to use again this year. There is an easy way to share these projects on Seesaw. This also can become a way for you to have a quick access for assessing these projects. Check out the steps below.

Introducing A New Special Seesaw Feature - Drafts

With Drafts, students can save work in progress and finish it later! All students demonstrate their learning in different ways. Drafts give students the flexibility to create and reflect on work at their own pace.

In order to take advantage of the Drafts feature, students need to log into Seesaw through Clever. The feature is not available when they log in through your class QR code. Use this option when your students are working on a longer project!

Drafts make it easier for teachers to check in on student progress and send students feedback.

To save work as a Draft, have students choose the Draft option instead of choosing the green check.

Thanks to Seesaw Ambassador, Jean Rutledge, for the explanation!

Use Seesaw for quick reflections around puzzles that support your curriculum. Once students can access Seesaw quickly, it shouldn't take but a few minutes for them to take a picture of the puzzle and explain their answer. Below are a few websites that when combined with Seesaw.

*A big thanks to Hilary Moorlach, DLS at EVE, for sharing these fun curriculum based websites with me!

Website Link: http://wodb.ca/numbers.html

Website Link: www.wouldyourathermath.com/

Website Link: http://www.bestofthereader.ca/Ebooks/Word_Games_and_Puzzles.pdf

As fabulous as the many activities and projects are in Seesaw, it is important to find ways to infuse Seesaw seamlessly into your daily routine. Don't underestimate the value of regularly asking students to hit the plus and video themselves explaining processes or reflecting on their learning by taking a photo and recording their voices. These should be quick and easy, and provide you with insight on how well a concept is understood by each student. Because they are curated into the class journal, it makes easier for you to review each one.

**Consider pairing Seesaw with Benchmark posters or eBook pages. Ask students for Seesaw reflections or answers to comprehension questions. Make sure your students know how to create a screenshot on their device.

A big thank you to Kelly Lewis, DLS at CVE, for these ideas and images.

If you are serving students in another setting other than their homeroom, Seesaw is an excellent way to communicate with parents about your time with them. First, you will need to open your Seesaw teacher account, open the wrench and "turn on" the Enable Family Access button. (This is a default setting for specialists in District 194.) You do not need to send home an additional letter for parents to have access.